The present invention relates to the management of cables in building structures. More specifically, the present invention relates to the routing of cables in building structures.
The increased use of computers and a myriad of other electronic equipment in the modern office has produced an enormous increase in the number of wires and cables that must be routed to each office and desk to service such equipment. This increase in wiring/cabling load presents two problems: (1) it often taxes the capacity limits of the in-floor cellular distribution system, producing "clogged" areas that impede delivery attempts to more distant workstations and offices, and (2) it has greatly complicated the facility manager's attempts to most efficiently and most cost-effectively handle constant workstation relocations--how does he activate a particular workstation at least expense? From which electrical closet does he route particular services? Which cable route is best, in light of other workstations' considerations and possible trench or cell capacity problems? How does he find out which services are currently available at a particular workstation? Is a dormant preset that will be reactivated wired sufficiently? If not, how best to route the necessary cables?
Since the office electronic explosion is a relatively new phenomena and cable dilemmas are only beginning to be realized, the problem has not been addressed to any great extent. Current cable management systems are merely record-keeping exercises in which energetic individuals painstakingly attempt to record by hand all cable placements and removals. In some cases, personal computers have been enlisted in these simple record-keeping attempts. See, "Setroute", Bechtel Power Corporation, Gaithersberg, Md. However, none of these attempts provided graphic support to illustrate cable relative to the building structure nor aided the designer in calculating the paths or routes the cables would follow in the building structure.
Furthermore, no computer aided routing system currently exists that operates within the constraint of the routes having to follow pre-defined paths (the decks and trenches) to get from one location to another location. The computer programs or methods that aid in cable-routing are essentially free to choose from all space to form a path between two locations. See, A. Perutti, "Computer Program Solves A Cable-Routing Puzzle," EC&M, pp. 65-71, August, 1986; D. Brown, "Choosing A Wiring System," Building Economics, pp. 50-55, March, 1986; and T. Fisher, "Electrifying Floors," Progressive Architecture, pp. 116-121, February, 1986.
Previously, the solution to these problems was to strip the entire system of all cables and start over with a mass re-wire or to simply install an access floor system (computer room floor) to provide additional capacity. Both systems are costly. What is needed is a much less costly, far more cost-effective and true wire management alternative to these "band-aid" systems.
The present invention is a user friendly computer program that solves all of the above mentioned problems. It is designed to operate in the context of a structural system as described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,721,051 to Fork wherein there is disclosed a structure that is commonly used to organize cable in a building. For the purpose of better understanding the present invention, this floor structure is now briefly explained. FIG. 1 shows several components of such a structural system 10 in a floor 12 of a building. At locations throughout the floor are presets 14 whereat cabling communicates with the office space from cells 16 (FIG. 2) and can be attached to computer terminals, telephones, electrical sockets, etc. (Note only the term cable will be used hereafter, but it is representative of cable and wiring and anything associated therewith and a computer representation of a cable as opposed to an actual cable unless it is apparent from the context of the specification that an actual cable is being referred to.)
The floor 12 includes cellular decking units 17 (FIG. 2) which present cells 16 through which extend electrical cabling 21 and communication wiring 23, 25. The cells 16 present access openings 15 and 19 through which the cabling 21, 23, 25 extends into the associated preset 14. Connections to the electrical cabling 21 and to the communications wiring 23, 25 may be made within the preset 14. Reference is directed to U.S. Pat. No. 4,603,523 which illustrates a decking unit and preset. Each trench 18, 19 (FIG. 1) is divided into three compartments, an electrical portion 20, and communication portions 22 and 24 along which electrical cables and telephone, computer or other types of cabling run. [The cell path a cable may follow and/or the compartment path a cable may follow are called a cable run.] Access by the cables to different floors or to a common area occurs at a closet 26 which may have a vertical sleeve 28 that connects to other sleeves, and together form a series which extends vertically through a building. The main cabling that runs through the vertical sleeve from which individual cables peel away is called a trunk. See the glossary in Appendix I (not reprinted; see application file) for a more complete definition of terms used herein.